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I was just wondering if someone can explain what can possibly be lost from an in-place upgrade of windows 7.
I've got a lot of errors that I'm working on in another thread, and it's not looking too hopeful. So I'm considering this in-place upgrade.
My concerns;

Does it mess with the registry?
I have a lot (seriously, a lot) of programs that have registry keys, and some programs that have several. Are these lost? I have a game on my computer that has 12 (that's right ...12)Keys to enter. not only that it takes HOURS to install. I've had to do it once before and it was miserable.

Custom settings?
My library folders are all set off OS drive (C since OS drive is an SSD. Pictures, Videos, Downloads, etc are all kept elsewhere. This isn't such a big deal since I don't remember it being too difficult the first time around, but would still like to know

Custom program settings?
Some of my programs are using custom settings too, like iTunes library is kept on drive G: but the program is kept on drive D:. Others like games keep saves on one drive, and the game on another also, and some programs store plugins and etc on separate drives. Is any of this lost?

Anything else someone else might've lost that might be a concern?

Thanks for any responses, hopefully I won't have to do this, but if I do, I'd like to be as informed as possible

hello i was wondering could you help me im in a stick i have one of these TOSHIBA SATELLITE PRO L450-13R.well i have a blue wd 250 sata hdd in in and i wanted to update my hdd to a wd 500gb sata black hdd.so i got one and put it in to my laptop and put in my system recovery windows 7 home premium .i also downloaded service pack one and put it on my pc then made a system recovery cd onto my sd memory card.well the windows loads onto the pc and when tells me its finished and i take out the sd card and turn on the pc it says SETUP IS APPLYING SYSTEM SETTINGS then a box comes up saying windows setup could not configure windows to run on this computer hardware. i just am stumped i have tried changing bois settings but not work at all what so ever if you could help me i would be totally great full what i am doing wrong or will this cd work on my pc with sp1 and the windows product key also on it.also i have done a clone of my original hdd and that worked but system restore cds d
ont work and came up with the same error.but i downloaded a windows 7 from the internet and that worked but i needed a product key so i know my new hdd works ok but just like to use my orriginal windows restore cd that came with my laptop on it so i can system restore it with the cd any time i want.please help point me in the right direction

If you are able to boot windows, why not just burn a restore disc?
Its an option with Windows 7, just open windows taskbar and search "create repair"
You'll find an option to create a system repair disc. That's a restore CD. Just run the program, insert a DVD and burn. Then store it away until you need it.

EDIT. think i misunderstood. Where did you get the copy of windows? Was it from microsofts website? If so you can usually use your product key for the computer that came with it, which should be printed on the bottom of the laptop.

thanks for getting back dude but the problem is that im getting this error when i run my windows system restore cd that came with my laptop.i thought because it did not have the sp1 file but i loaded that on to my laptop then made another system restore flash drive then put in my new wd 500gb black hdd switched on my laptop pushed f2 then booted my new windows but all loads ok but same error comes up (windows setup could not configure windows to run on this computer hardware)its genuine comes with my laptop and i got the key from under my laptop

cjkuhlenbeck, if you do a Repair Install (in place upgrade you called it), the registry will be set to pretty much 9install default. All or almost all software will need to be reinstalled.

With the problems you are having, I would suggest you backup your data then do a Clean Install, formatting during the install process. Yes, you will have to reinstall everything but the likelihood of fixing the problems you are having is significantly better than a Repair Install.

If you do not have a Windows 7 installation DVD, or it's not up to the Service Pack level currently installed, you can download a legal copy with SP1 integrated from here:

Make sure you get the same version you have, Home Premium, Pro or Ultimate and 32 or 64 bit. Note that Basic or Starter is not available.

I recommend using ImgBurn at 4X speed (or the slowest available) to create the DVD from the downloaded .iso file. Just be careful during the install not to accidentally install some of the bundled junk that comes with it. Always take The Custom Install option.

You can do this on any computer capable of burning a DVD.

YOU MUST HAVE A VALID KEY TO INSTALL THIS .ISO.

The one on the COA sticker on your computer will work. You can also create a bootable USB Flash drive (4GB or larger) to install Windows 7 from.

In this case it seems to definitely be the advanced format part:
Advanced Format disks have a physical sector size of 4 kilobytes and a logical emulated sector size of 512 bytes. "Advanced Format" is a new technology being adopted by PC manufacturers to increase media format efficiency which will lead to larger capacity hard drives. If you are replacing a hard drive in an older PC, you may be more likely to encounter this issue.

This should fix:

Code:

Method 1: Download the appropriate drivers for your hard disk drive
Download and install the latest drivers for your Windows 7-based or Windows Server 2008 R2-based computer. To do this by using another computer, visit the following Intel website and download the appropriate drivers for your hard disk drive (either 32-bit or 64-bit) to a flash drive. Or, burn the drivers onto a CD or DVD. The flash drive or the disc will then be used during setup of Windows 7 or of Windows Server 2008 R2.
http://www.intel.com/support/chipsets/imsm/sb/CS-031502.htm
Go to another computer that has an internet connection and click the link below to download the driver for your hard disk drive (either 32-bit or 64-bit):
http://www.intel.com/support/chipsets/imsm/sb/CS-031502.htm
Save this downloaded driver to a DVD or USB flash drive or an external hard drive that can be taken to the PC that you're installing Windows to.
Next, start the installation of Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 and watch for the Load Driver option. You will see this option on the Where do you want to install Windows? screen in the lower right corner.
Connect the USB flash or external drive to the computerthat you're installing Windows or take the Windows DVD out of the drive and put the driver DVD into the drive. (You will put the Windows DVD back into that drive after the driver is loaded)
Click Load Driver, (clicking this option checks removable media for storage controller drivers)
Once the driver is loaded, continue with the Windows setup.
The Advanced Drive Format hard drive will be recognized and Setup will continue as expected.

Thanks Ztruker,
That was one of the main things I was worried about. I'm pretty sure a Win8 upgrade will do the same. If it comes down to a re-install, I will definitely do a clean install then. Just hoping I don't have to at this point.

I was just wondering if someone can explain what can possibly be lost from an in-place upgrade of windows 7.
I've got a lot of errors that I'm working on in another thread, and it's not looking too hopeful. So I'm considering this in-place upgrade.
My concerns;

Does it mess with the registry?
I have a lot (seriously, a lot) of programs that have registry keys, and some programs that have several. Are these lost? I have a game on my computer that has 12 (that's right ...12)Keys to enter. not only that it takes HOURS to install. I've had to do it once before and it was miserable.

Custom settings?
My library folders are all set off OS drive (C since OS drive is an SSD. Pictures, Videos, Downloads, etc are all kept elsewhere. This isn't such a big deal since I don't remember it being too difficult the first time around, but would still like to know

Custom program settings?
Some of my programs are using custom settings too, like iTunes library is kept on drive G: but the program is kept on drive D:. Others like games keep saves on one drive, and the game on another also, and some programs store plugins and etc on separate drives. Is any of this lost?

Anything else someone else might've lost that might be a concern?

Thanks for any responses, hopefully I won't have to do this, but if I do, I'd like to be as informed as possible

CJ, never fear a reinstall at the top site on the web for that speciality, especially if you stick with the tools and methods to do a perfect Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7. You'll have a better install than 90% of them out there, and keep it that way if you stick with the tools and methods given.

Set DVD drive first to boot, HD second, set SATA controller to AHCI, Save changes and Exit.

Then boot into Windows 7 installer DVD or flash stick burned or written using tool and latest ISO for your licensed OS version here. I would use a fresh ISO written with tool in Step 2 as yours is in question.

After install you can adjust partition size or Create new partitions for data, etc. in Disk Mgmt. You are creating the partition here for the purpose of wiping the HD and marking Active which overcomes certain install failures.

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